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RENDEZVOUS

Crisis, response-and overflowing thanks

by Dave Simmons, Drummond

As I glance back at the history of the Rocky Mountain Bible Mission my heart is filled with gratitude to God for how He took the "mustard seed faith" of Matthew 13:31-32 and planted it in a few committed Christians here in the northern Rockies.

One of the hallmarks of the RMBM is that when a real crisis occurs, committed Christians who have first given themselves to the Lord respond generously. We see people responding to our God Who "is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us" (Ephesians 3:20).

We could point to how Camp Utmost began as a few weeks of Bible camp for kids on leased Plum Creek land, lost that lease, and now has its own forty acres with beautifully functional, mortgage-free buildings poised to have an even greater impact for Christ with a developing year-around conference and retreat ministry.

A recent drama was the sudden demise of the ancient commercial refrigerator up at Camp Elohim early this summer, on the eve of our busy weeks of Bible camps. What was the camp to do, with no reserve funds for this? The Edsons’ personal refrigerator could be only a brief stopgap...and no nearby snow bank in June!

As the result of our appeal that quickly went out, God’s faith seeds sprouted again and, with caring concern, many different Christian people responded abundantly. Two replacement two-door commercial refrigerators at a total cost of $4,338.00 were the wisest choice.

Praise the Lord! Enough money came in for the refrigerators and (with the donors’ permission) to replace the two freezers at Camp Elohim (one of them was even older than the refrigerator that went bad)!

This reminds me of the gifts Paul was grateful for when he wrote, "this service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God" (II Corinthians 9:12).

This overflowing thanks to God happens when believers are truly making investments for eternity. It takes faith to be sacrificial when you don’t know where the money is coming from. But it has come, and that is part of the mystery of how the Kingdom of heaven is advanced on earth—advanced by a grass-roots Rocky Mountain-centered Christian organization of people who have very little money by this world’s standards, and who dare to live by faith.

Another example of seed faith is how the Lone Rock Bible Church began as a humble home Bible study but now, this week, is moving into their new, mortgage-free church building with a sanctuary that will seat upwards of 400 people!

Most assuredly, many, many other examples could be given of how members and friends of the RMBM have responded to different crises in the Mission: Christian building contractor Dave Donnerberg responded to the call and now bi-vocationally pastors Plummer Community Bible Church on the Coeur d ‘Alene Reservation in Idaho. Portland City Parks' foreman Larry Brown is now beginning a pastorate at Drummond Community Church. Bev Paulson saw the need for follow-up materials for camp kids and responded with a superb CD, Joy for Kids, featuring Philippians and geared just for them.

Our goal remains the same: to lead children, teens, and adults to place their full trust in the Lord Jesus and to help them grow as His disciples through the relational ministry of the Word. God does this, and He builds His kingdom through committed people.

A present set of crises involves both of our Bible camp/retreat centers. They have a serious need for additional, year-around staff and part-time summer staff. Additional volunteer laborers are needed right now to help complete the director’s house at Camp Utmost.

God is able to more than meet these needs. He looks for cheerful givers—staffing, laborers, and financial givers. God will again be glorified by the faith of His people!